SACRAMENTO, Calif. — "Slow Down Sacramento" is not just a plea but a group working toward better pedestrian and bicycle safety. The group said three people were killed on the roadways within a 24-hour period last week.
It’s also a plea from several people who have recently lost loved ones who were walking or biking on city streets.
Marshall Shimmon lost father-in-law a week ago in Natomas.
“The simple I’m rushing to work, I’m just checking a text, could result in the loss we have experienced as a family, which is extremely heart breaking. There is no recovering from it. There is no amount of money that could replace him,” Shimmon said.
The man was a father and grandfather; he was out biking as a form of therapy after having to bury his late wife.
“That was part of his healing process. For him to be killed in the act of growing, surviving, trying to get back on track with life, makes it very difficult for the family,” Shimmon said.
Slow Down Sacramento said the grandfather is just one of three people hit and killed in North Natomas in the last six months. Overall, they said 30 people have been hit and killed in Sacramento County this year.
The movement has caught the attention of City Councilmember Lisa Kaplan.
“There are some streets where I tell my kids to get on the sidewalk. I’ll be on the road, where I appropriately should be, but I’m not going to risk my children's life because there is not dedicated bike lanes on some roads where people are driving 40 to 50 miles per hour,” Kaplan said.
She said, while the city has a plan to promote safer streets and create more bike lanes, it’s not enough.
“It’s no secret Sacramento is in a budget deficit so what we need to do is start telling the story and letting the community members know we have to go back out to the ballot because the money we get from the state doesn’t cover the changes we know we need to make,” Kaplan said.
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